Questions and Answers of Physical Geography Great Systems

What would be the best way to distinguish between an intrusive and extrusive igneous rock?
Describe the rock cycles of the continents and oceans. How has the continental rock cycle produced geographic differentiation of the continents?
What do the continental shelves have to do with the formation of sedimentary rocks and what are the principal sources of sediment that go into these rocks?
Referring to Figure 18.6, describe the relative geographical positions and elevations of the three major features of the continents: shields, orogenic belts, and continental shelves.Figure 18.6
Using Figures 18.11 and 18.12 and the accompanying text, list and briefly describe the sequence of processes involved in seafloor spreading.Figure 18.11Figure 18.12 tectonic plate IDENT mosphere
What is the theory of continental drift, and how did Alfred Wegener support it? What two key questions were not addressed by the theory, and how were these questions ultimately answered?
What are the relative locations and elevations of the major oceanic features: abyssal plains, oceanic ridges, and trenches?
How is it that subduction and seafloor spreading can be considered opposite, but equal, parts in a single system, what force(s) drives this system, and how does it apparently operate within the deep
Identify the relative changes in the temperature, density, and thickness of an oceanic plate as it moves from the mid-oceanic ridge to a subduction zone. What happens to the sediment that accumulates
What distinguishes the Pacific Plate from the other major plates and how fast and in what direction is this plate moving? What are microplates and what role do they play, if any, in the growth of
Name the three types of convergent plate borders and identify which produced the Andes, the Himalayas, and the Aleutian Islands. Which of the three would you expect to be composed mainly of basaltic
What is a triple junction and how does it lead to ocean basin formation? What is a failed arm and what role does in play in the geographic development of a continent?
Name the main types of islands produced in association with plate tectonics. Which is not associated with a plate border and explain why this island type forms where it does and why over geologic
Define the term orogeny and describe three ways that orogenies contribute to the growth of continental landmasses.
Are older orogenic belts physically different than younger ones as we see them today? How old are the newer ones considered to be, can you name some examples, and in general terms where are they
Continental crust is often described as relatively thick and stable. Is there any evidence that continents break up? In the past? When and where? In the present; and if so, can you cite an example
What was the Great American Interchange, what did it have to do with plate tectonics, and what affect did it have on South American marsupials. How does this contrast with the story of marsupials in
In terms of geographic organization, name the subdivisions of an orogenic belt, largest to smallest.
The form of a mountain often differs appreciably from the geologic structure of its origin. Explain.
What are the 3 basic types of stress operating in the crust and which of these is most common to which type of plate tectonic border?
What is meant by the principle of original horizontality and what does it mean when rock formations do not conform to this principle? In the big picture of a continent, where would you generally
What is the difference between the crustal movements that give rise to normal and reverse faults? And what differentiates a reverse fault from a thrust fault?
Describe the type of fault structure that led to the formation of (1) the valleys of the great lakes of Africa, (2) the mountain ranges of the Basin and Range Province of western North America. In
Describe the origin of anticlinal and synclinal valleys; how the landforms are formed by the limbs; where in North America such valleys are found; and one major influence you would expect them to
Earthquakes emit both surface and body seismic waves. How do these waves differ and which is the most destructive in the landscape?
What is the difference between an earthquake’s focus and epicenter? How is the location of the epicenter determined?
Someone is looking for an easy way to describe the global distribution of earthquakes. What feature(s) of the crust would you tell them to focus on and why?
What is meant by earthquake magnitude, how is it measured, and what term is given to earthquakes of 8.0 and higher magnitude? How common are such earthquakes?
What is the difference between the Richter and Mercalli scales? Is it possible for an earthquake to register a very high Mercalli number and a not so high Richter number and vice versa? How so? And
In the summary diagram on page 496, trace the path of rock material from the mantle to the continental shelf and list the steps along the way. Does this constitute a system? And in the grand scheme
How do the four basic types of volcanoes (flood-basalt, shield, composite, and cinder cone) vary in terms of structure and geographic extent? What processes acting within each type contribute to
What is a super volcano, what is the nature of the force that drives them, and should we consider them to be a phenomenon limited to the Earth’s distant past? Explain.
What are the primary sources of energy that drive geomorphic systems and enable them to perform work? And what are the products of that work?
What is the nature of the relationship of geomorphic systems and the rock cycle? Of the 10 billion tons of sediment produced by geomorphic systems each year, where does most of it go? What about the
Why has the amount of material exported to the sea by the Earth’s major river systems increased over the past 12,000 years?
Describe the cycle of denudation and mountain uplift, and explain how feedback works to keep the system operating.
Geomorphic systems are driven by energy from different sources. What is the difference in the response of a stream system and a glacier system to inputs of precipitation?
Most rocks are alien to the Earth’s surface. Does this statement explain why rocks weather so readily in surface environments? And what factors cause weathering rates to differ with geographic
Identify the principal chemical weathering processes and indicate how (and if) water plays a role in their operation. Which one is the major player in karst topography.
Why in most locations are the landforms produced by the weathering of sandstone so different than those produced by the weathering of limestone? Under what conditions would you expect these two to
Describe the steps or phases involved in the process of exfoliation and identify how feedback works in an exfoliation system.
Of the many processes responsible for the erosion of hillslopes, can you identify the most insidious one and some of the conditions that contribute to it?
If we look at slopes as systems, what do we identify as their three main parts? In what part(s) of the system would you expect to find alluvial fans and talus. What geographic conditions make for a
Identify the geographic settings where human activity has greatly accelerated desertification and hillslope erosion.
Define three ways in which water contributes to slope instability and name the types of mass movements that result.
Using Figures 21.2, 21.3, and 21.4 briefly describe the three phases of stream systems in terms of inputs of water and sediment materials, and how this matter is transported through a stream
Name a process, landscape feature, or geographic condition commonly associated with each of the following slope forms: S-shaped, concave, convex, straight, and complex.
Describe the relationship between parallel and non-parallel slope retreat with open and closed geomorphic systems.
What are some of the potential impacts from global warming on stream systems? Why are we not sure about the exact outcomes on stream systems as a result of human activities?
Using Figure 21.11, identify the different types of energy involved in a stream system, and offer an explanation for the fact that stream velocity does not accelerate wildly with distance
Describe several of the downstream trends related to flow that are common to most streams. How do water depth and channel roughness influence streamflow velocity?
What is scouring and how does it generate sediment in a stream? What are the main sources of sediment in a stream system, how are bed load, suspended load, and dissolved load moved in streams, and
What is the difference between aggradation and degradation, what natural and human activities contribute to each, and how is channel form affected by each?
Referring to Figure 21.24, what are the common landforms found in floodplains? Which of these are produced by erosion? By deposition? How do you explain the origin of the terrace?Figure 21.24 meander
Can you describe the pattern of streamflow in a meandering channel and how it relates to channel erosion and deposition and to the formation of an alluvial plain on the valley floor?
How do watersheds function as sediment systems, what are the sources of input, where is sediment stored and what are these sites (places) called? Is it accurate to think of the watershed sediment
What is the general explanation for the huge contrasts in sediment production among the great rivers of the world? In particular, what accounts for the difference between the Amazon and Brahmaputra
Can you describe the character of the landforms and related landscape features in each of the three zones of a watershed system? Which of these is best described in terms of sediment production,
How has plate tectonics influenced the locations and patterns of large stream systems on the continents? In South America, how do you account for the fact that all the large rivers drain to the
What are the main stages in the geographic cycle and how would you describe the general character of the landscape at each stage? In the dynamic-equilibrium concept, the landscape does not go through
How do you explain the assertion that in today’s world humans are the dominant agent of change in stream systems? Describe some of the efforts now underway that are designed to lessen human impacts
What are the four geomorphic systems operating on the marine side of coastlines? How do these systems differ in their origins and the type of work they perform?
Figure 22.6 shows seas and swells. How do these products of wind differ in their form and movement?Figure 22.6 gusty wind seas distance. time swells
Identify two events where at least two of the four marine geomorphic systems work together. What are the results of these interactions?
Referring to Figures 22.8 and 22.9, describe the motion within an oscillatory wave. Name 4 changes that take place in a wave’s shape and motion when it changes from oscillatory to
What is the concept of fetch, and how does it change with direction and a geographic scale. And what does fetch have to do with shore exposure?
What is meant by the term wave-base depth and how is it possible that this depth changes with different wave sizes?
What is a nearshore circulation cell? Using Figure 22.15 as a reference, name the three main flows of water drawing these cells and describe how they operate and move sediment.Figure 22.15 waves rip
What is wave refraction, and how does it influence the distribution of wave energy along a coast with bays and points?
Using Figures 22.31 and 22.32 as a guide, identify the primary landforms associated with emergent and submergent coasts. What are the distinct roles of plate tectonics, glaciation, and deposition
Describe the three-step process of bank erosion. How are bedrock and softer shorelines eroded, and what shoreline features result in each setting?
What explains the occurrence of deposition zones or sites, along a shoreline? Using Figure 22.25, identify the landforms associated with these sites: coastal island, mouth of a bay, head of a bay,
What are sediment sources and sediment sinks and how are they linked together to form a system? What name is give to such systems and what does it mean if a system has a large net sediment transport
At the global scale, how do plate tectonics influence coastline development? What are the differences between active and passive coasts in terms of their formative processes and landforms?
Name three structures commonly used in coastal engineering, what they are designed to do, and the nature of the problems they often create.
In the 21st century struggle between humanity and the sea, the outcomes will be different for different countries. Discuss several of the factors that will shape these outcomes.
Can you define four basic differences between glacial ice and lake ice?
What is the current percentage of Earth’s land area covered by glacial ice and where is most of it found today? How about 18,000 years ago?
What are the key differences between temperate and polar glaciers? In which class would you place alpine glaciers? The continental glaciers of 18,000 years ago?
In our model of glaciers as systems, can you describe how the basic system works and how a glacier should behave when its mass budget is negative over an extended period of time. What happened to
Can you describe the processes involved in ablation and identify which one is dramatically displayed in Antarctica?
What is basal sliding, is it more common to polar or temperate glaciers, and what do you propose should be its connection to scouring or abrasion?
Based on the illustrations in Figure 23.23, can you describe the three stages of development in an alpine valley? What stage is associated with fiords and where in the world would we such
Where do glaciers carry their loads, where do most loads come from, and where in the glacier system are most deposited?
Alpine glaciers are famous for the distinctive landforms they impart to mountain landscapes. Can you define the features known as hanging valleys, cirques, horns, and arêtes and reflect on how they
What is the difference between material called till and that called glaciofluvial? And what landform features are associated with each, and what would they look like if you saw them in the field?
Humans have been described as the children of the Ice Age. Explain the logic behind this assertion.
What are glacials and interglacials, when did the last glacial reach its peak, and what were some of the major biogeographical changes associated with it?
Can you describe the general relationship between the increase and decrease in global temperature, glacial ice mass, and sea level?
What is meant by the term periglacial environment, what is permafrost, and how are periglacial landscapes affected by global warming and land clearing?
Continental glaciations such as those that occurred during the Pleistocene begin in the sea. Is there any basis for this remark and why?
How does wind speed vary with altitude above the ground surface, and what effects do these variations in wind speed have on particle transport at the global, regional, and local geographic scales?
What landscape feature provides the best protection against wind erosion?
Considering the wide range of wind speeds that blow over the Earth’s surface, what class of wind speed (for example, frequent light winds, average speed winds, or infrequent strong winds) is
Based on your knowledge of airflow and wind power, explain why auto and bike racers “draft” (stay close) behind the cars or bicycles in the front of the pack?
What are the Nebraska Sandhills and what processes are thought to be responsible for their formation?
Wind accelerates as it passes over an obstacle like a sea cliff or mountain range. What happens to the load of particles it carries once it has passed the obstacle?
Distinguish between saltation and traction in terms of the form of particle motion and the total work accomplished by each process.
The largest percentage of desert landscape is not covered by sand dunes. What type of desert is this and what are some of the key surface features you would expect to find there?
Describe the process in a wind system leading to the segregation of particles by size into distinctly different populations and deposits and why sand dune and loess deposits end up in different

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